Snowflakes are actually snow crystals, they are usually in the form of small hexagonal prisms. The snow crystal growth usually begins up in the cloud with a dust particle, which provides a structure on which water molecules can start condensing to form a snow crystal and starts it's process of splintering. No snow crystals are exactly alike, just like our fingerprints. It is believed that each snowflake is made up of from 2 to about 200 separate crystals. Christmas Special Page